\documentclass{article}
\usepackage{tikz}
\usepackage{pgfplots}
\usepackage[T1]{fontenc}
\usepackage[utf8x]{inputenc}
\pagestyle{empty}
\begin{document}
A sinewave looks like \tikz\draw[domain=0:18.84, scale=.1] plot function{sin(x)}; and a spiral looks like \tikz\draw[parametric, domain=0:18.84, scale=.1] plot function{.2*t*cos(t),.2*t*sin(t)};.
\end{document}

